Born and raised in sunny Namibia, a lonely desert-ridden country in the southwest of Africa, I’ve grown up with dreams that stretch far beyond the desert sands I call home.
I started acting at an early age – though I’d like to say I’ve always been a performer – and spent my school years on stage acting in popular plays, shorter works I had written myself, and also as a dancer and musician. Sadly, there is no film industry to speak of in my home country, though I’ve always been attracted to the medium of film and the intimacy of the camera.
Once I graduated high school, I spent some time travelling the world, and have spent extensive periods of time in Europe, the UK, and the USA, for work, leisure, and studies. All the time, though, I fell back to my first love of acting. I’ve completed numerous acting courses in Cape Town at film schools, independent facilities, and the University of Cape Town, my alma mater, worked as a talk show host at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, where I spent a semester on a scholarship, and deep-dived into the most fascinating Meisner and Method classes in London. More recently, I’ve been studying under Matthew Harrison and his Vancouver-based Actor’s Foundry. All the while, I’ve been fully immersed in the world of film and television.
And here we are today: I spend my time between Cape Town and London – and wherever else work may take me. I’m incredibly grateful to have made my passion my career, and I’m blessed for every production I get to be a part of.
In my day-to-day, I’m usually very active and always on the go, though I counter-balance my active lifestyle with Stoic principles, meditation, gratitude, and journaling. I enjoy being in nature, and the beach and mountains always call my name, though I equally love dancing, gymnastics, martial arts, swimming, yoga, and skating. I’m also very much a foodie and run I Love Foodies, where I share my passion and love for the culinary arts.
All in all, I love adventure, I love learning, and I love living life to its fullest. All day. Every day. I am Benike Palfi.